Page 17 of A Thread of Breath and Bone

Aksel shakes his head. “I’m saving your ass. Dawn is still thirty minutes away. Get your princely ass back to your own room so that this—” He gestures between the two of us. “—doesn’t get around.” He sighs. “As much as it’s inconvenient, she’s probably right.”

“Of course she is,” I say, scrubbing my palms down my. “Thanks for the wake up call.”

He snorts. “We drew straws.”

I roll my eyes. “Figures.”

When I stand, Raea shifts, reaching for me in her sleep. I lean over her, brushing a strand of hair from her face before kissing her forehead. Her eyes flutter open.

“Go back to sleep,” I whisper, pressing one last kiss to her mouth. She smiles softly before sinking deeper into the sheets.

I shut the door quietly behind me.

Minutes later, I’m back in my own room, turning the water on for a shower. I have meetings, practice, and a mountain of work waiting for me. Our last game of the season is in a few days. If we win, we’ll be headed to the championships. I’m going to enjoy every second of what I can.

All the Proto reports showed the Veil was stable. Weak, but stable. Except for the edge of Mori. Ateria’s Protos, however, has not responded. Either King Alexi is preparing for war, or he’s hiding something worse.

I’m glad Aolyn went home. She’s supposed to be joining our leadership meeting through a holo. I doubt she’ll be able to give me any answers today, but knowing that she’s there on our behalf settles some of the tension.

It’s the not knowing that’s driving me insane.

Chapter 7

Raea

I wake up with a yawn, stretching in the sheets and reaching for Ry, only to remember he left early this morning. I can’t wait for the days we don’t have to sneak around.

Today, classes start up again, and I’m not sure if I’m ready. How am I supposed to sit in class and pretend to care when I know a section of the Veil is gone?

My mind spirals as I shower and dress, replaying everything we’ve learned from the Book of Beginnings, the Codex, the scrolls.

Somewhere, there have to be answers.

When I head out of my room, I’m surprised Ryker isn’t waiting. In fact, the only person outside of my room is Aksel.

“He had practice, and Ezra is reviewing…” He pauses. “You’ll have another guard by tomorrow.”

It's like a blow to the chest, but I inhale and nod before heading downstairs. I go through my morning routine at breakfast, smiling and pretending that everything is okay. When Britta asks, “So how long have you two been sneaking around?” I nearly choke on my food.

Tate pounds on my back while I reach for my water.

“I mean, you both had all of us fooled. We thought you hated each other.”

When I can breathe again, I respond, “We did. It’s our Bond. It’s really intense and with our childhood—” I shrug.

It’s Aada who leans in from down the table and asks, “Okay, but how have you not lost your Bond? We aren’t blind. That man is the definition of sex…”

“Good morning, love,” Ryker interrupts, kneeling next to me.

Aada turns red as she sinks into her seat, and the rest of the table looks away, though they aren’t doing a good job at hiding their eavesdropping.

He’s still sweaty from practice with a backward hat shoved over messy hair. It should be illegal for someone to look that good with so little effort.

Because I can, I cup the back of his neck, running my fingers through the short strands peeking out, and press a soft kiss to his lips. “Morning,” I whisper against his mouth. I can feel everyone’s eyes on us. “Good practice?”

He nods before whispering into my ear, “I’d love to know what she thinks of the poor men who actually crawl into bed with her. If I am the definition, and I’ve surely never visited her bed⁠—”

I can’t help but snort as I smack his shoulder, not daring to look her way. “You’re unbearable.”